The Way I Saw You
by LilCoffeeOak15
Summary: A simple night at the lake of skipping stones turns into deep thoughts of a certain duck regarding a certain mouse thanks to a simple sentence.


"I wish you could see yourself the way I saw ya."

Donald was taken aback by his friend's seemingly out of nowhere statement. Truth be told, he may have spat out the last drop of his soda had he not swallowed it before Mickey had said it. It wasn't the words in general that had surprised him for the most part, but how they were said and the fact that Mickey had chosen to say them at this particular moment.

The two of them had decided to skip stones over the lake as a way to pass the remainder of the night until they decided to turn in seeing as how neither of them could get to sleep quite as easily as Minnie and Daisy could that night. It was just a relief that camping offered quite a few calming outdoor activities. They had been caught up in their little contest of seeing who could get their stone the furthest into the lake with Donald shouting a few colourful words choices as he usually did during competitions-friendly or not, and Mickey simply chuckling at his friend's obnoxious behavior he was so used to coupled with light jabs at his expense from his own mischievous self. It wasn't long before the began to tease one another. But Donald hadn't said anything demeaning about himself-or anything about himself at all during their joking around, so he wasn't sure why Mickey had decided to say what he had said or what he had fully meant by it.

He saw his friend begin to lay down on the grass before shifting himself into his side. Obviously he wasn't going to keep talking about it to him right away. Whether it was because he was getting tired or because he had realized it had come out of nowhere and wanted to drop it before Donald could ask him what he had meant by it and turn it into a whole other conversation neither of them could talk about properly.

Taking his friend looking like he was getting ready to go to sleep into account, Donald decided not to directly ask him what he meant by it, but it make him curious. Curious enough to begin thinking about what Mickey could have meant by that.

Was there really something his best friend saw in him that he didn't? Donald would often grumble aloud to no one in particular whenever anyone was within earshot or even if he was alone about how frustrating his life was after a bad day (which was with the drake's luck and misfortunes, more than a few). Just about anyone who was close to Donald knew that the duck found himself wishing his life and luck were different, or to be somebody else. What made it more confusing was that Mickey was one of the people in his life he found himself jealous of.

He was Mickey Mouse. The all too nice guy everyone in the neighborhood would ask for the smallest of favors, knowing very well he wouldn't hesitate to help out. The guy who had a sweet relationship with his girlfriend, the little misunderstandings they had being resolved quickly with them talking things out, never lasting long. The triplets went on about how much fun they had pulling pranks on him because he would join in in their fun with pranks of his own, and let them eat all the treats and snacks they wanted to the point where Donald had begun thinking twice about letting him watch the boys when he was busy or needed a break from their antics. Uncle Scrooge would often treat him as if he was his own nephew as well due to his closeness with Donald, and he was pretty sure he had heard Scrooge mutter one too many times about how he wished Donald were as pleasant as him sometimes. No matter what happened that mouse somehow found a way to pick himself up and keep his spirits held high. Never one to dwell too much on the bad things that may happen around him or to him. Donald would never admit this to Scrooge or Mickey, but sometimes he wished he could be a bit more positive about life too. But he was Donald Duck- and it seemed as if the entire universe was out to get him just because he was Donald Duck. He found it quote hard to have an optimistic outlook on things when he got stuck with nothing but bad luck. Not helped by Mickey himself never seeming to fully get how frustrating it was to the mallard at times. Or the mouse's jokes about having a hard time understanding what he said half the time. With so many people drawn to his perky attitude and how things always turned out alright for him on the end no matter what trouble he got himself into, what did his friend see in the guy who had so many hardships going on in his life that was worth wishing he could have?

He then thought about how Mickey would often come to him for relationship advice whenever something serious did happen between him and Minnie-or even when he thought something was going wrong in their relationship out of his own anxiety-, knowing how things got with him and Daisy frequently. Or if he needed someone to help him stand up for himself when he was being pushed around or taken advantage of-facing facts, that mouse could be somewhat of a pushover at times. He thought about the times Mickey had described him as one of the toughest guys he knew. He remembered one time Mickey had asked him just how he handled the triplets outside of keeping them entertained and taking them to fun places when he had dropped the boys back off with him after watching them for a couple days and commented on how he could never do whatever it was that Donald had done to provide for them and raise them into the kids they were now. And just what being a good parent was all about. Something hit Donald hard after thinking about these things.

Donald was brutally honest to others when he had something to say, he was short tempered, sometimes rude, boisterous, selfish, and was the 'fight first, ask questions later' type. He stood up for himself, and his family and friends without hesitation. Mickey was in many ways the complete opposite of him. Optimistic, playful, a bit too naïve and trusting of certain people, held his tongue when there was something would like to say about certain individuals or at least muttered it behind their backs, and didn't wish anything horrible on anyone, even those he wasn't particularly fond of. Did Mickey ever wish that he could say what he really meant about things Like Donald could? Be as strong and defensive as he was. Stand up for himself and take no amount of bull from anyone. Just say 'no' to people once in a while. Be a bit more of a 'tough guy'. Like Donald had such an easy time doing as if it were nothing.

Whenever he went off to people close to him about how things never seemed to work in his favor, they played attention. Much more than Donald thought they did. Mickey was his best friend. He didn't just pay attention, he could pick up when something was bothering him. Even if neither if them said anything about it. He might not have said anything about it up until now, but perhaps Mickey was aware of how Donald truly felt about himself. Maybe he sensed something was up with him while they were skipping stones that night and teasing each other.

Quite ironically, maybe what they were jealous of in each other happened to also be what they loved about each other the most. Perhaps what Mickey might have meant by it was that he wished the duck would embrace the best of himself along with his flaws the same way he did. Then again, it wouldn't bother him too much if he never fully knew.

Pushing all these thoughts to the back of his mind, he lay down next to his friend on the grass, whom looked half asleep now. He looked at his tired form and let out a sigh he could only respond to Mickey's statement with "Yeah, me too". Not sure if he was asleep or not, he gently nudged his friend's shoulder before giving it a light squeeze.

"Same to you."

Shortly after he felt a gloved hand bigger than his own gently move over his. Donald was a bit surprised, but let it happen. He normally wasn't the most physically affectionate with Mickey, but he'd make an exception for tonight.

"Goodnight, pal." He whispered to him before closing his eyes himself.


End file.
